That’s a hard question to answer. Far easier to look backwards at what has worked – then base tomorrow’s decisions on that. That’s rear-view mirror publishing at its finest. It rarely works. Because what made the prior novel a hit was, in large part, how unique it was. By the time your copy-cat version of the vampire novel or Shack-like tale comes out, the next trend will have already hit.
Far better to anticipate what readers want. Be creative. Find the next big idea. Deliver it fresh.
To pursue that model takes creativity, risk… and a better understanding of tomorrow’s preferences than yesterday’s bestseller list.
So what do Christian Fiction readers want to read next? Are you sure – or are you using dated stats or clichés heard from an outside source? Authors often hear from their fans – but not from those who passed on their last work. The publishing industry watches trends – but rarely sits face-to-face with readers across the country to listen to these passionate fans.
Thomas Nelson Fiction did just that. We created a custom on-line survey that more than 5,600 Christian Fiction fans have completed thus far. We then invited a small subsection of those responders living in three of the top Christian Fiction markets to in-person conversations. Our Marketing Director and I personally led six focus groups across three states. Our entire marketing, editorial and packaging team attended at least one of the six groups.
To say we gleaned a wealth of information is a massive understatement. Insights on why they read what they read. What they’d like to read but can’t find. Thoughts on actual and potential cover designs and back cover copy. What causes them to stop reading a Christian Fiction novel. Series or stand-alone novels.
Listening well doesn’t mean we do everything we hear. It simply means we better understand the reader. And the better we understand the reader, the better our stories.
An added bonus? Merging completely unrelated comments from all six groups led me to an idea. What if we mixed two unrelated genres for a story unlike anything currently available. Less than a week later, we found the author to write that very novel. In a year or so, you can read it.
While you wait for that, you can read some of our key research findings in the weeks ahead. Insights that dusty rear-view mirror won’t see coming for a few more years.
